


Keep Me in the Dark

by OneThousandAngels



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Anal Sex, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sex, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-05
Updated: 2014-05-05
Packaged: 2018-01-22 01:08:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1570361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneThousandAngels/pseuds/OneThousandAngels
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jack Frost is a brand, spanking new spirit excited about discovering his new world and amazing powers over ice and snow, but his excitement quickly dulls as he realizes he's all alone. Struggling with his isolation, Jack slips into depression. When tragedy strikes, Jack starts to lose his grip, but just when grief seems poised to destroy him he meets Pitch Black, the first person that could ever seen him. Similarly intrigued by one another and desperate not to be alone, the two quickly become an inseparable but dysfunctional pair until Jack discovers the Guardians.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keep Me in the Dark

Jack loved having fun more than anything else, of course, but lately fun had gotten…less fun. Because he was an ageless spirit, somehow he’d managed to lose track of how long exactly it had been since he’d found himself standing on a frozen lake basking in the light of the moon. He’d seen many seasons come and go, over and over again, and still he was alone. He’d gotten used to most other aspects of life as…whatever he was. He’d mastered his powers over ice and snow and learning to ride the wind. He learned to use his “invisibility” to his advantage, spending time on himself and sometimes venturing into the naughty side of things…heck, he wasn’t an angel, how could you expect him to not watch a cute guy in the shower once and a while, I mean, wouldn’t you?

Sometimes he could hardly stand not to have people in his presence, even if they weren’t aware of his. if he had to be alone for one more second he thought he’d lose his mind. He would sleep on the floor beside humans he grew attached to, willing them to open their eyes and freak out about the weird kid sleeping on their floor, but they never did. He may have spent months, even years with them as he grew familiar with their name, appearance, likes and dislikes, the intimate details of their lives and they would never know him. They slept peacefully while Jack, who almost never slept, spent the night gazing out the window at the moon. Sometimes he would talk to it, out loud or in his head. Sometimes he’d just stare. But it never answered. No one ever did. 

Sometimes Jack hated everyone. The pain of his isolation would seep into his soul until he felt hard and angry inside, bitter about what he was, vengeful and furious and depressed. He’d hide away in the woods for weeks at a time avoiding everyone and everything as if they could even find him in the first place. He hated them all for being happy while he was cursed and miserable. He hated the fact that he even existed, unable to find fun or joy in even the simplest things like he used to on days like these, but he didn’t always feel like that. When he did, though, he thought maybe he’d never be happy again. 

Jack sat by a frozen lake, not dissimilar from the one he’d been born on, but he was hidden from the light of the moon by gigantic trees that made his surroundings pitch black. He didn’t know where he was exactly, but it wasn’t something that mattered anyhow. He had no home or family to go back to so it wasn’t as if he even could be lost. He stared into the darkness, forlorn and distant.

It was then to his astonishment that he heard a voice, a soft sound like a sob. Jack could tell in an instant that it was the whimper of a child. He stood in the deep snow and gazed around quickly, peering through the darkness. “What the…a kid? Out here?” After a moment or two a child stumbled into his view. She couldn’t have been older than eight or nine…she looked frozen to the bone. He moved closer to her quickly, his clear blue eyes widening with worry and surprise. She looked awful as she plopped down by the frozen lake and curled into a ball, too exhausted even to cry. Her clothes were torn in places and she had scratches and bruises on her body, but Jack couldn’t tell what they were from. He kneeled down by her fearfully. 

“Hey, hey, little girl, are you alright? How’d you get out here?” He hesitated doubtfully, then he tried to touch her, but not surprisingly it went straight through her, leaving his skin with an unpleasant tingling feeling. Her skin was starting to look a little blue. Jack looked around the forest frantically. “S-stay here, I’ll bring help, I’ll be right back! Don’t be afraid, I’m going to help you!” He took off into the air and flew off to find where she came from…she wasn’t like him, someone must be looking for her! 

Eventually, he came to a wide country road, but there were no cars in sight. He swore under his breath then yelled into the emptiness all around him. “HELLO!” Nothing stirred. The surrounding snow seemed to swallow the sound of his voice in an instant. His head darted back and forth, panic-stricken, before zooming back into the forest. Having no trouble finding his way back, seeing as he’d been navigating forests his entire life and with the added bonus of a bird’s eye view, he found his way back to her quickly enough still huddled at the edge of the frozen body of water. He landed breathlessly beside her with the elegance of practice then crouched down in the snow next to her. 

He was at a loss. He couldn’t bring her home, he couldn’t warm her up, he couldn’t even comfort her. Jack held his trembling hands out to her helplessly as he eyed the pallid color of her skin, determined to do something, uncertainty and worry filling his entire body. His core ached and he felt nauseas as his thoughts spun wildly in a flurry of desperation. The only thing he could think to do finally was to use his powers to maneuver the snow away from her tiny body so that she was only sitting on the frozen ground. The girl didn’t notice. Even if she'd been looking she honestly didn't seem very lucid.

He muttered quickly, “Don’t worry, we’re going to get you out of this together. It’ll be okay. Don’t be afraid, I’m going to help you…somehow...” He grumbled in frantic irritation and lowered his head as he ran his fingers quickly through his white hair, muttering anxiously, “Damn it…!” 

A few times Jack left her to search again for any sight of someone that might have been looking for her, a passing car on the road, anyone that he could lead in her direction, but there was no one at this time of night. What could have happened that she would end up out here on her own? He wasn’t naive, it wasn’t as if he didn’t know that there were terrible people out there that would snatch a little girl then dump her in the middle of no where, but it wasn’t something he was capable of wrapping his mind around…not yet. Later as he cowered in the dark searching fruitlessly for sleep it would come to him, but not now. 

After about ten minutes of soaring rapidly through the trees, he came back to her side and felt a rush of cold night air fill his lungs as he breathed deeply in relief to see that she’d moved, laying on her side. As he came down beside her, though, that relief sank violently from his stomach like a kick to the gut. She looked like a corpse, eyes closed, laying stiff on her side and covered in frostbite. 

He held his breath and stood several yards away from her for a few moments until he got enough courage to step towards her, his feet sinking deep into the snow one by one, heavy like cinderblocks. Eventually his slow staggering steps brought him to her side as he breathed, “No…no…she’s not….” He let out a heavy, shuttering breath as he kneeled down close to her and waited. And waited. 

When the sun rose Jack didn’t notice. The morning light shown across the icy surface of the lake, glinting softly in the dawn, utterly serene and beautiful. The sun climbed higher reflecting light peacefully all around him and still he crouched beside her and he waited and he waited and he waited, certain she would move or someone would come or…anything. Anything at all. Just like how he’d been waiting his whole life for someone to notice him, he waited for something to save her, sure that eventually some miracle would occur. The beautiful winter wonderland around him remained silent and apathetic, unapologetic in its perfection as it surrounded the two unmoving bodies in the snow. 

And then it was almost midday and neither of them had stirred. Jack had been filled first with terror and dread, then denial, and now a great and terrible sense of overwhelming loss filled him like water filling his lunges. He abruptly stood and backed quickly away from her as it all came tumbling down on him in a rush of grief, guilt, and anger. Without looking back he took to the sky.

He was sure someone would help her right up until the end when he accepted that she was already gone. She was so young, she had seemed so afraid, but he was positive someone would come for her. It never occurred to him that she might actually…

For the first time, Jack felt cold. 

 

 

 

Time passed by Jack in a dizzying haze, rapid and yet agonizingly slow as the sun glided overhead and then dropped down beyond the horizon, again and again. He had drifted through the sky getting as far away from that place as he could, only stopping when he realized it would never be enough distance. He dropped down into a small country town and stepped into the street as all around him icy winter wind whipped around punishingly. The town thought it had a storm on their hands already, but they hadn’t seen anything yet. He'd only just arrived.

Jack gazed around at the cozy houses, lit warmly inside, filled with families and friends. He started to walk down the street toward a bridge as he allowed the violent storm around him to crescendo, drawing on the pain in his heavy heart. He hardly knew what he was doing until he was doing it, he just wanted to destroy something, anything, he’d never been so angry. He’d never hated the world so much. What was the point in it all? He'd just as surely killed that girl as anyone else had. It was his fault. It was humanity's fault, and it was all so senseless, all this suffering and all his suffering. He used to tell himself that it would be worth it in the end, that one day when he was ready if he just kept hoping and doing his best it would all turn out alright…but nothing could make this alright. 

He faced the small covered bridge as his body shook. He screamed as he held up his staff and directed a powerful blast of ice at the bridge, his screams tearing at his vocal cords. Tears rolled down his contorted face and froze on his cheeks as he poured all his pain and fury into the storm, making the bridge lurch and groan as the hurricane reached its greatest heights all around him. There weren’t any cars on the bridge, but if there were he wasn’t sure he’d care, in fact he probably wouldn’t have noticed. He needed to destroy it and be damned the consequences, he needed to make something pay for the way he felt. The pathway of the bridge rose and fell, rocking dangerously as the stone foundation began to crack. Meanwhile the snow and wind around him howled, blocking out all light and sound. 

Yet somehow when he heard an irritated voice call out, “Excuse me, do you mind?” It somehow didn’t really register as being unusual, unable to puncture his delirious frenzy. Jack yelled with a scowl, “I’m a little busy at the moment!” Obviously they wouldn’t be talking to him, but he was used to replying anyway. Slowly it dawned on him, though, that no one could be out in this storm….simultaneously with this realization, the deep, male voice answered with sarcasm and a bit of amusement, “Yes, I can see that and you’re doing a lovely job of being a nuisance, but could you finish it up? It’s a bit of a bother.” 

He stopped in an instant and whirled around in place where he stood in the middle of the snow covered dirt road to see a tall, pale figure who’s flowing black attire struck a startling contrast to the snow all around them. A pair of bright, glinting eyes glared back at Jack. He stared wide eyed back in sudden innocence and disbelief, instantly causing the storm to lessen in intensity in proportion to the exhausted intensity of his emotions. He took a step towards the stranger, stepping hesitantly and barefoot through the heaps of snow. 

“Are you….are you talking to me?”

“You’re not very bright, are you? Who else might I be talking to?”

He ran breathlessly towards the man, suddenly feeling weightless and giddy, looking into his eyes as they looked back into his…looked back at him for the first time in his entire life.

“You…you can see me?!” 

The man sighed patiently as he surveyed the slender boy judgmentally. “Yes.” Pitch knew about Jack Frost. He liked to think he knew everything, especially anything involving other spirits, not to mention that Jack had been spending plenty of time hiding out in the darkness lately.

Jack stepped right up to Pitch and put his hands on his chest delicately. It was solid. He jerked his hands back with a soft gasp as his eyes filled again with tears and he took shallow gasps of air, as a wave of emotion hit him like he’d hit the bridge. “You can see me..!” He almost started to smile, but he was exhausted, at the limit of his endurance and it was too much. His expression of happiness crumpled, but he still reached up and put his hands on the man’s face excitedly, feeling it with disbelief before dropping his arms to his sides and sobbing hoarsely. The man cringed away from Jack as if in revulsion, but he was curious and a bit fond of this strange boy. He was about to speak when Jack flung himself at Pitch and threw his arms around him in a desperate embrace. Goodness, the boy was lucky he was so damnably attractive or he might have lost his arms. And frankly he was just so completely pitiful that rejecting him further really seemed unnecessary.

“Hey,” he said loudly in annoyance. His effort to scold him faltered however as he heard him sobbing quietly into his chest and watched as his slim shoulder shook. 

Nonetheless, after a moment Jack backed off raising his hands defensively, a sweet and apologetic half-smile on his handsome face. He didn’t want to scare off his first friend already. “Sorry! Sorry, I…you’re…this is the first time I ever…had someone see me! Or touch me or speak to me or…anything!” 

Ah, it made sense now. He could tell immediately when he saw him and sensed his aura that he was a young spirit, quite new actually, in fact that was what attracted him to Jack’s presence in the first place despite the storm. That was why, he told himself, he'd been stalking him for some months now. Someone, anything that new, would be vulnerable. A new ally perhaps, or prey. He wasn’t sure which one Jack was yet.  
He gazed at him evenly, eyebrows raised sardonically. “I see…well, congratulations.”

Jack beamed at him once he’d finished wiping his face clean of any dampness. “I know, right?!” The pale skin around his eyes was a bit red. Despite looking drained physically and emotionally from his recent exertions, the boy couldn’t seem to stop grinning now. He laughed again happily. 

“Who are you? I’m Jack Frost!” He explained somewhat breathlessly.

“Pitch Black.”

“What?”

“Pitch Black. It’s my name. You may call me Pitch.” 

Jack stared at him with an adorable, vacant expression as the information processed. He muttered the name quietly to himself, testing the words in his mouth. “Pitch…Pitch Black…”

“Yes, yes, that’s right,” Pitch confirmed with an impatient tone.

“Pitch….great! Let’s be friends!” 

“I don’t know about that…” He turned and began to walk away, but didn’t protest as the frost spirit scampered and floated after him delightedly. 

“Alright, alright, don’t be such a sour puss, I’ll be good I promise, and no more touching.”

Pitch eyed Jack’s posterior intently as he dashed in front of him like a puppy. 

“I don’t know about that either…” He muttered to himself absently. Jack glanced back at him then turned to face him as he continued walking backwards, arms crossed behind his head as he held his staff behind his back casually. “What was that, Pitch?”

“Nothing, nothing at all.”

**Author's Note:**

> I knooow there's no smut, but I promise there will be plenty and I'm about to graduate from college and go home to take a nice long rest (before jumping into my job search), so I'll have time to work on this and give you perverts all the naughty stuff you deserve, just let me finish grad stuff.
> 
> Actually, let me just warn you that this fic is probably going to 1. rip your fucking heart out and 2. get extremely fucking kinky and possibly violent cause I like that shit. I like playful, passionate, dirty, sad fics, so I'm hoping that's what this will be. Thanks for reading, constructive critiques welcome.


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